traces of the same DNA

My dad recently discovered the wonders of the internet. The biggest discovery he has made so far was that he found a picture of his maternal grandfather -- a full-blooded German -- through the internet. His grandfather was a novelist in the early 20th century kasi. It was quite rare for us kids to see a picture of our European ancestor kaya, heto, we couldn't resist comparing the faces of my dad and my brother with the old man himself.

Magkakamukha ba? What do you think? :-D

just desserts

Presenting... three of the best panghimagas I have tasted in recent memory. Now if I can only remember their names...


This is Capuccino... something. Basta, super sarap nito.


(From L to R) Orange... something, and creme brulee... I think.


Two months ago pa kasi itong mga pics na ito. Hehehe. Some college friends and I had them at Sentro after watching SATC.

Thanks Luisi, for sending the pics. Better late than... later. :-D

Doc is in town!

Hindi pa Christmas ha. Our highschool barkada had a quick reunion a few hours ago coz Dr. Richelle is in town! If it weren't for Doc's unexpected Manila visit, sa December pa kami magkikita-kitang tatlo. Hehehe.


Makati mommies. "Single" daw sila for a few hours so we can have some serious girl-talk.


Doc and me. Hindi kami nag-aaway. Lalagyan lang namin ng bags yung chair sa gitna.

Sunday at the Festival

My MA classmate (Professor Jhen) asked me to accompany her to watch a film (she made it a requirement in her class, upon my suggestion) at the Cinemalaya Festival last Sunday. I was already planning to watch the films when they get eventually screened in UP later this month, pero the film she bought tickets for was one that wasn't in the line-up in the UP screenings. Since ililibre niya ako sa ticket, go na rin ako. Hehehe.


Asked Jhen to pose in front of the movie's banner. The story wasn't that good (Jhen noticed everything that wasn't "callcenter-correct"), and the technical aspect wasn't that polished. Nakaka-disappoint.


After the screening, we went to the San Miguel by the Bay area at Mall of Asia and walked the whole strip before looking for a place to eat. Sa sobrang init that day, ang sarap tumalon sa fountain.


Jhen and I ended up eating at Harborview. Ordered spicy squid and Brazilian steak. Not that yummy though. Gutom lang kami talaga. Hehehe.


There's a Hooters branch in the strip somewhere. Hindi ko lang nakunan ng pic.

Done with Book One!

I thought I've seen and read every vampire-boy-meets-mortal-girl story in American pop culture, until my friend Ee Ya Kin told me to try the first book in the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. My verdict? It's good, really good.

Joss Whedon may have set the bar so high with the Angel-Buffy-Spike story arcs in his slayer tv show (I loved that show), but Stephanie Meyer may have created something a little bit new in the genre. Although there is still that usual action-packed theme of good-versus-evil (present in every sci-fi novel), I think Meyer's book stands out because it really concentrates on the intense relationship between the two protagonists, Edward and Bella -- it's teen-age romance with a lot of sweetness and angst. There is mush, mind you, but there is a lot of heart too.

Thanks Ee Ya Kin, for introducing me to the series.

Thanks to PDI, for devoting two full pages to the Twilight series and its upcoming movie adaptation. Thanks to an issue of Time Magazine, for saying Meyer could be the next JK Rowling (hindi naman siguro). These helped a lot in convincing me to buy the first book.

And thanks to the producers of Twilight the movie, for casting Robert Pattinson as the vampire boy. I thought we'd never see him again after he died as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Hehehe.

Will get started on Book Two, very soon. :-D

ensaymada encore

I'm not sure kung na-feature ko na yung ginormous ensaymada ng Diamond Hotel before. But just in case hindi pa, here it is again.

korean food, finally

After Mamma Mia, masarap kumain. We decided to try the Korean resto, Chosun. My Seoul sister and I watched a hilarious Korean film about a cooking competition (mala-Iron Chef, Korean version) last week kaya we thought it was about time we tried Korean food, just to know if it was as delicious as it looked in soap operas and films.


I've been craving for some chapchae for such a long time. This resto's version is good. But the best chapchae pa rin for me was the one I tasted in the old foodcourt of Greenbelt 4. I can't remember the name of the restaurant though.


Fried dumplings -- kakaiba ang lasa (not your typical dimsum n' dumplings siomai). Matamis and garlicky ang sauce.


Beef Bulgogi (yummy enough that my mom loved it), plus some kimchi (di ko tinikman) and egg rolls (to chase away the anghang).


Haven't done this in a long time. Bulgogi Veggie Wrap, Joyce-style. You like?

FUN MOVIE!

First of all, let me say this: Meryl, old girl, YOU ROCK!


Saw the movie today! Loved it! I've been pestering my Seoul Sister with ABBA songs for about a week (paulit-ulit kasi ang trailer sa tv), much to her dismay.

According to the movie's print ad, "singing and dancing are allowed in the cinema" -- isn't that enough to make you go and watch? Although Robinson's Galleria is screening the film complete with the lyrics of the song, we watched it at Shangrila instead (baka ma-distract lang kami sa kakabasa ng lyrics eh. Hehehe). Walang sumayaw sa sinehan, but I could hear people laughing and singing -- Huangcholi laughed hard and sang softly. So proud of her. She's handy as she practically knows all the songs!

I wish my Auntie Kris lived long enough to see this movie. She taught us most of the ABBA songs when we were young kasi. I miss her.


But the main reason I wanted to watch the movie was because of these two guys. Good to see Pierce Brosnan aging gracefully. Not so good to know he doesn't sing so well pala (the man has a flaw!). Good to know Colin Firth can out-sing Pierce and Stellan. Bad to know he looked really young to be (sort of) paired with Meryl Streep(well, he is 10 years younger than the woman).

I want to go and see the Greek islands now, please.

guilty pleasure

My Seoul Sister and I have a favorite Korean tv show... and it's not even a Koreanovela! We discovered the show by accident. My sister and I were packing for a beach trip two months go when she switched the tv channel to KBS World, the Korean channel on cable to wait for a drama series. Instead of a telenovela, "2 Days and 1 Night" was on, a funny reality travel show. Para siyang "Extra Challenge" on GMA-7 a few years ago. The difference is, this one features the same six Korean celebrities (4 singers, 2 comedians) in every episode. The group travels to different parts of Korea and plays different games to win various rewards (food, board and lodging, etc.). What makes the show so funny is not so much the places or the games (although puwede na din kasi may natututunan ka about their culture), but the hilarious banter among the six castmates (yung kulitan is similar to the 5 gay guys on Queer Eye -- hindi nga lang sila mga bading). Di ko alam kung maganda lang ang pagkakasulat ng English subtitles pero sobrang nakakatawa talaga. Kudos to the writers, the editors and the producers for making the thing so darn entertaining.

Friday was for the kids

Boys' Day Out. It was my nephew Lance's 7th birthday, so we took Lance and the two other boys from their tired parents' hands for the day and trooped to Fun Ranch, the latest amusement place for children in Pasig. First on the itinerary was the huge jungle gym and play area (my mom's treat). Siyempre, kasi yun ang airconditioned eh. Hehehe.

At the sidelines. While the boys (and the yaya) were taking off their shoes, the rest of us stayed at the dining area. Ang sarap subukan yung slide. Hehehe. We only stayed for an hour 'coz there were two parties scheduled there at 5pm.



Ang sarap maging bata. For one hour, the three boys -- Lance, Curt and Toot-toot -- ran all over the huge playground. The older boys got addicted to the slides, while the baby of the brood spent his time parking his tiny butt in the ball swimmingpool and bouncing on the giant keyboard (remember the movie BIG?)

It's so... red. Madami din palang nagpapaparty dito sa resto. I peeked inside at may inaayos na party tables din!

Libre ang yaya. Birthday treat ko na kay Lance ang pagsakay sa mga rides. Siyempre, kasama na ang mga kapatid niya. Buti na lang yung mga bata lang ang kailangang may ticket. P50/ticket kasi!

Color wheel. Sobrang makulay nitong ride na 'to. Halos hindi na makita yung mga kids.

Spongebob kids. My Seoul sister treated the boys to kalesa rides around Tiendesitas (across the street from Fun Ranch). Toot-toot loved the horses enought that he started imitating how they walked. Ang cute! (The Spongebob attire c/o the Seoul Sister)

lindol!

Newsflash! Lumindol kanina around 8 p.m.! My sis and I were having dinner in our room and watching TV when our beds started swaying! Napatingin kami sa mga baso namin. Yep, gumagalaw ang tubig! We immediately switched to a local news channel in Skycable. They were already talking about the lindol kaso di pa ma-verify kung gaano kalakas. Initial reports said mas malakas daw sa Pasig and Cainta than Quezon City.



More on the lindol tomorrow. Wait lang kayo. :-D

strange weather on a Saturday afternoon

Ang sabi ng matatanda, kapag umuulan daw at nakasilip ang araw, may kinakasal na multo. Or was it may kinakasal na Chinese? I think it's may kinakasal na multo, kasi lagi namang may kinakasal na Chinese. :-D